Blogs from Uttarakhand, India, Asia - page 5

Geo: 30.45, 78.08... read more

It was 6:00 in the morning when my alarm rang that day. I was in my bed, completely merged in the soft and hot blanket provided by the hotel boy of Monarc Hotel in Mussoorie. I checked my phone and it was showing a temperature of 4 degree Celsius, with a prediction of heavy snowfall. OMG!! Snowfall? Prediction? I mean seriously? That also in Mussoorie, which has a height of barely 2006 m? I rubbed my eyes once again and rushed towards my hotel balcony to witness the actual outside scenario. And my hope sank. It was still dark outside with no hint of either sun or snowfall. I could barely see a distance of 2 /3 m with my naked eyes. It was FOGGY!! And it was damn COLD!! My heart was broken. I looked ... read more

India is a country where both the natural and spiritual worlds share a deep and primordial connection. This is a place where natural elements like air, fire, earth and water are revered as gods. The most important of these natural deities are the rivers of India and the most powerful amongst them is the river Ganga. She is a water goddess who descended from the heavens to cleanse the humans of all their sins. She has been a blessing to the hot and crowded plains of the northern India through countless millennia, by creating and replenishing one of the most fertile soils on earth. All around her the great cycles of birth, death and rebirth are endlessly played out. Flowing through these natural and spiritual worlds is the Ganga - India’s river of life. India has ... read more

Maybe you've heard, but I got robbed on the train on my way from Haridwar to Delhi. A man followed me into the train, caused a scene, grabbed my bag and left the train. He was a professional - it was impressive really. Everything was under his control and ran like clockwork. He acted like he was helping and then managed to create a human shield of Indians behind him so I couldn't get through to follow him. He got away with my bag that included passport (with visa and my beloved collection of stamps), bank card, credit card, over $400 cash, iPhone, laptop, steripen, purchases from Rishikesh, journal, books, ... a lot of stuff, both valuable and irreplaceable. Every day I've remembered something else that was in the bag that I can't ever get back ... read more

Говорят, ничего случайного нет. Все закономерно или даже предопределено. Может быть. Не знаю. Но, правда, в Индии я оказалась совершенно случайно. Я даже и не собиралась туда никогда. Не мечтала, не планировала. Может, даже и не хотела. Да я даже и не думала о ней. И когда в Индии меня спрашивали «а почему вы приехали, для чего, как так», я точно так же отвечала «случайно». А все твердили «нет, что вы, в Индию никто не попадает случайно, это совершенно неслучайно. Это же Индия». И, видимо, были правы. Но все начиналось именно так, совершенно случайно. Однажды я была у мамы и к ней в гости зашла ее подруга. Разговорились о делах, планах, поездках, и она сказала, что собирается в сентябре на 25 дней в Индию. Она занимается йогой и ее йога-интруктор как раз набирает группу для поездки ... read more